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Ascent Resources Donates STEM Program to 2K Elementary Kids in OH
Ascent Resources, Ohio’s largest natural gas producer and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S., recently donated STEM (science, technology, engineering, math) curriculum and supplies to some 2,100 elementary students in eastern Ohio, where the company works. The materials in the curriculum boxes that Ascent staff assembled came from the Ohio Oil and Gas Energy Education Program (OOGEEP). The kiddies can now learn about the wonders of fossil energy and contemplate one day working in the Utica oil and gas industry, using STEM every day in their jobs.
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Permits issued to drill new Marcellus/Utica wells slipped last week, for the week of Nov. 7-13. Last week saw a total of 26 new permits issued, falling from 43 permits the week before. Pennsylvania received the most permits, just barely, with 13 new permits. Ohio received 12 new permits, and West Virginia a single new permit.
In 2020, EOG Resources, one of the largest oil and gas drillers in the U.S. (with international operations in Trinidad and China), sold *all* of its Marcellus assets, which were located in Bradford County, PA, to Tilden Resources for $130 million (see 
Earlier this year, Equitrans Midstream announced it had filed a new pipeline expansion project with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (see 
We have chronicled a number of companies that buy royalty and/or mineral rights from landowners in the Marcellus/Utica over the years (see our previous stories about royalty mineral rights sales 
Ascent Resources, originally founded as American Energy Partners by gas legend Aubrey McClendon, is a privately-held company that focuses 100% on the Ohio Utica Shale. Ascent is Ohio’s largest natural gas producer (352,000 leased acres) and the 8th largest natural gas producer in the U.S. The company issued its third quarter update yesterday. Ascent averaged production of 2.34 Bcfe/d for the quarter, up significantly from the 1.98 Bcfe/d it averaged in 3Q21 (18% increase). Production was also up from the 1.97 Bcfe/d produced last quarter, 2Q22 (19% increase). Nearly all of Ascent’s production (94%) was natural gas, while the rest was oil and NGLs.
A press release issued yesterday announced the partnership between an Appalachian driller we aren’t familiar with, Oil Well Shares (OWS), and Canada-based OYA Renewables to form a joint venture called Chrysalis Energy. The new company will use OWS’s 1.5 million leased acres across Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia to build solar farms, wind farms, and “energy storage infrastructure projects.” We have some thoughts about this partnership and how it may impact landowners.
In 2020 EOG Resources, one of the largest oil and gas drillers in the U.S. (with international operations in Trinidad and China), sold *all* of its Marcellus assets, which were located in Bradford County, PA, to Tilden Resources for $130 million (see 
Yesterday, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce held its “Energy Supply Chain: Present & Future” conference at the Ohio Statehouse Atrium in Columbus. Participants and speakers included oil and natural gas producers, pipeline operators, policymakers, renewable companies, and more. Questions largely centered on the energy transition and how various resources fit into a so-called sustainable future. The upshot was that Ohio’s natural gas (mostly Utica, some Marcellus) is front and center as a driving force for Ohio energy, and the Ohio economy.
Here’s the latest ingenious way radicalized anti-fossil fuelers are attempting to cut off and strangle the Marcellus and Utica shale industry: Deny drillers any kind of means to dispose of the brine (naturally occurring water from the depths) that comes out of the borehole for years after a well is drilled. One of the best, most environmentally safe ways to dispose of brine is via injection wells. Antis are trying to strip Ohio’s right to regulate injection wells in the Buckeye State, hoping if the feds take over, many of those wells would get shut down.